One question that I've been thinking about is when do we start clearing out the board books in our house? Or another way to look at it is, does my 5 year old still want to read her board books? I think the answer is that there's still a real benefit to having younger books around for familiar, independent reading. Let me recommend this title, No No Yes Yes by Leslie Patricelli, and share a story about it.No No Yes Yes (Leslie Patricelli board books)This is a very funny book - showing on each page spread the No, No (scribbling on the wall), and then the Yes, Yes (drawing on a piece of paper). From a very early age, parents and children will enjoy reading this book. The drawings are simple and full of silly situations, like eating dog food or floating bath toys in the toilet, that make even older children laugh out loud. The repetition will help young children want to read the story over and over again. It's a perfect first board book.
by Leslie Patricelli
MA: Candlewick Books, 2008.
ages 1 - 5 (and older!)
But it's more. My youngest daughter is 5 years old and her preschool class is asking them to practice talking in front of the whole class. She is at the very early stages of reading (her name, her friends' names, basic words). She was able to read this book in front of the whole class, confidently and with expression. What a wonderful thing - for a young child to think, "Hey, I can read! I can read this all by myself!"
So, if you have young children at home, seek out books by Leslie Patricelli. She has a gift for capturing the rhythms and heart of young children. If you have older children, keep your board books. You might find they have the magic key for helping unlock the reader in your children.
For another lovely review of No No Yes Yes, see the post at The Well Read Child.
Find No No Yes Yes at the Oakland Public Library. You can buy it online through IndieBound independent bookstores or Amazon. Thanks to John and Melissa for this great recommendation and a magical moment for Emily.
Do you have a good question? Post it in the comments, or email me at mscheuer(at)rdschool(dot)org
We pared it down here at home when our daughter reached about age 6 and was devouring Junie B. books. When we're done with them, we either donate to Goodwill or do what we did again recently, which was to box them up and ship them Media-Mail rate to younger cousins across the country.
ReplyDeleteI was happy to see you talking about this book! I bought the whole series for my school Resource Room--mostly because several of our teachers work with kids who have severe handicaps, and I thought the children might respond to these clever books. (We ordered a lot of touch-and-feel books for this group, too.) My favorite Patricelli book is Yummy Yucky. You wouldn't think such a simple book could be so funny!
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